As companies create and process more and more data, the data storage systems required to handle the data must provide faster data access and higher data storage capacities. Data storage systems are implemented in data centers having large numbers of servers in rack-mount trays. The servers manage access to centralized resources or services in a network. The data centers house several servers at the same time, often storing each server in chassis, such as a tray or blade. Several trays are commonly stored in a single cabinet, and a plurality of cabinets are often arranged in rows separated by an aisle.
As a server's processing power increases, so does the heat that is radiated from server processors and other circuitry. Heat can damage various components within a chassis, such as temperature sensitive hard drives, that have a specific temperature window for optimal operation. Extremely high temperatures in certain service aisles can create health risks for data center employees that must enter the aisles to manage cables, fix connection issues or perform other tasks such as routine maintenance. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) enforces regulations that prevent data center employees from working in environments that exceed a certain temperature.
Servers of the prior art typically feature input/output (I/O) terminals that face into the hot aisle. Such servers do so because they lack the ability to be turned around so that their I/O terminals face into the cold aisle (i.e., to allow data center employees to work in the cold aisle rather than the hot aisle). When a server of the prior art is simply turned around such that its I/O terminals face into the cold aisle, the motherboard must also be located next to the cold aisle due to inherent connector limitations. The motherboard cannot simply be positioned downstream from the temperature sensitive devices because doing so places the motherboard too far from the I/O terminals. Accordingly, turning the chassis around places the temperature sensitive device downstream from the heat-generating motherboard. When air is passed through the chassis to exhaust the heat into the hot aisle, the hot air radiating from the motherboard is carried into contact with the hard drive or other temperature sensitive device.
The air may be blown into the server by a computer room air conditioner (CRAG) or computer room air handler (CRAH). The air may also be directed into the server by one or more externals fans that are located outside of the server tray and face into the chassis. Alternatively, rather than being blown through the chassis, the air may be drawn through the chassis by a fan located at its rear. In any such configuration, temperature sensitive devices are exposed dangerously high temperatures that can cause them to fail.
Given these shortcomings in the art, there is a need in the art for servers with improved cooling systems that increase cooling efficiencies while reducing heat exposure for sensitive components and data center employees.